1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a dental instrument, and more particularly to an electrical toothbrush, which can effectively clean the teeth and gums by inspiring a proper brushing motion.
2. Description of Related Arts
Gum disease (periodontitis) is one of the common dental problems. Periodontal disease, especially in the early stages, is usually not painful such that many people having gum disease do not even realize it. Researches report that the periodontal disease is an infection in the gums caused by the bacteria in plaque, wherein plaque and bacteria build up on and between the teeth, especially at the sidewall of the tooth and along the gumline. To prevent the gum disease, dentists always suggest having a better oral hygiene by brushing and flossing regularly. By reducing the amount of plaque on your teeth, you can reduce the amount of bacteria in your mouth.
Brushing method is the most common method for removing plaque built-up on the teeth. Accordingly, the proper brushing for effectively cleaning teeth and gums is that the bristles of the toothbrush should place along the gumline at a 45 degree angle such that the bristles 3A can contact both the tooth surface 1A and the gumline 2A. Then, the bristles 3A should be gently brushed the tooth surface 1A two to three times using a vibrating back and forth rolling motion, as shown in FIG. 1. It is worth to mention that the bristles 3A of the toothbrush should maintain a 45 degree angle with the gumline 2A to remove the plaque from the areas between teeth and around the gums.
Accordingly, the arrangement of the bristles is important since the bristles directly contact the teeth and the gumline. A conventional toothbrush comprises a brush head that the bristles are alignedly formed on the brush head in row. By using the conventional toothbrush, the user may merely take 10 minutes to complete the brushing with the above mentioned brushing method. However, studies show that each person will spend 2 to 5 minutes to complete the brushing. In other words, the improper brushing habit influences plaque accumulation.
An electric toothbrush is introduced to reduce the brushing time because the brush head is powered to provide a high-frequent brushing motion of the bristles. One common type of electrical toothbrushes provides a circular brushing motion for the bristles such that the bristles can substantially brush on the teeth surface. However, the circular brushing motion of the bristles cannot remove the plaque from the areas between teeth and around the gums in accordance with the proper brushing of placing the bristles along the gumline at a 45 degree angle and gently brushing the tooth surface with rolling motion. In other words, the circular brushing motion of the bristles can only “polish” the teeth surface.
Another common type of the electrical toothbrush provides an ultrasonic for the bristles to break the plaque from the areas between teeth and around the gums by means of vibration. However, in order to effectively clean the teeth and gum, a brushing force must be applied on the bristles to actually brush on the teeth surface to remove the plaque along the gumline. In addition, such ultrasonic-electrical toothbrush violates the rule of proper brushing.
As a result, due to the structural configuration of the electrical toothbrush, the bristles of the toothbrush cannot effectively remove the plaque from the areas between teeth and around the gums, especially the areas inaccessible to the toothbrush. Thus, an improper brushing the gumline may even cause the gum bleeding.